Workers’ immigration status not relevant in federal wage suit

In a case of first impression for the district, U.S. District Court Judge George A. O’Toole Jr. has ruled that employees of a Chinatown restaurant company who claim they’re owed unpaid wages and overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act may move forward with their suit despite the employer’s assertions that are not entitled to recover such wages by the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986.

Acknowledging what he called the continuing “tension” between federal labor and immigration policies over the issue, O’Toole noted in his March 23 order that under the statute, provided the plaintiffs present an FLSA case, they are entitled to an FLSA remedy regardless of their immigration status.